In this week’s newsletter,

— Aubrey Moloto, Caroline Koma

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In Issue 94 we promised you a proper sit-down with Juicy. We got just over an hour with him in September. Ask him what he does, and he keeps it short: "I'm a creative."

He teaches dance, acting and music. He's acted full-time since 2017, "mostly focused on ads and theatre". Juicy sells free-range chicken, eggs, fruit, veg and juice he makes himself. Now it all runs out of his shop on Main Road.

Battles In The Park

Juicy was born in Auckland Park and spent most of his childhood around beautiful St Peter's Anglican Church. After that, he moved around every two years or so: Orange Farm, the Free State, an uncle on the West Rand. "Every community I went to, because I'm outgoing, it was easy to fit in," he says.

Dance came first, from about 2006. He'd watch the older guys practising in the park, take a few steps home with him, practise, then come back and battle the guys he'd copied. By 2012, he was walking into other schools after class to take on whoever was there. In 2016, a guy who ran a studio saw him and told him to "pull up". That's where the hip hop dance came in.

By the time he looked at going to dance schools, he'd already judged some of their teachers in competitions.

Sweets Over The Rugby Field

His acting career started on paper. He wrote short stories in class and caught himself acting them out as he wrote. There was a five-day camp at St Peter's that put him on stage. "I was like, oh, okay, I'm nice."

His mom didn't want him acting, so he paid the agency joining fee himself by selling sweets at school, and took the agency's calls himself too. When teachers started confiscating his stock at the gate, he threw it onto the rugby field first and had his mates carry it in.

The Jobs He Turned Down

He won't do alcohol or cigarette ads, or the music videos and club gigs that go with that world. He once turned down a whisky ad worth R50k, and the casting calls slowed down after that. Other actors called him picky.

"I think when you try to do the right thing, it takes even longer," he says.

Clapping The Beat At 27 Boxes

His first dance class was outside at 27 Boxes, on concrete, at R25 a head. There was no speaker, so he used his phone. When that wasn't loud enough, everyone clapped the beat. One girl came. Two people walking past stopped to ask what was going on, then brought their kids.

Breakdancing on concrete tore the kids' beanies, and rain chased everyone to the sides under cover, but classes went on. He asked management for an hour a day indoors, but he didn't have the money to back it yet.

Busking For A Speaker

So he busked. On his first day at the Linden market, he made about R2k. The market started paying him monthly, then asked him to do a bigger show to launch a new market in Waterfall. One ad job paid about R8,000, which helped get a speaker, flyers, a phone and a camera on lay-by.

He cycled to gigs to save taxi fare, until Metro Police found him on the freeway on his bike and held him for four or five hours.

Then he went back to 27 Boxes with cash in hand, and Tiago, who ran the place then, told him to "pull in".

Lamb Burgers At The Juicy Market

The fruit and veg started as a health thing. A naartjie costs a couple of rand, and vitamins cost R200, so "why don't you just eat the pure thing?"

So he started the Juicy Market at St Peter's, with one rule: sell what you made. "If you sell bough burgers, we can't allow you. It's not juicy."

He sold lamb burgers off his own recipe without tasting a single one. A mom of one of his students bought two, came back with a straight face, and asked for three more. The burgers sold out, and so did the juice and his melting moments. The last Juicy Market ran in 2024, and he wants to bring it back but at the new shop this time.

The same year he started the Juicy Program, he began teaching skills people can earn from, like turning chicken waste into gas. "Let me not give you fish. Let me teach you how to fish."

Everything Under One Roof

The shop at 7 Main Road puts it all in one place, because "doing things in different areas" wasn't working. The acting school has moved over from 27 Boxes. Dance now goes past street styles into contemporary, traditional, kizomba, Latin and cha-cha. "If you want a cha-cha class, you're going to drive to Bryanston," he says. Piano and sewing are on the list too, and dance battles with cash prizes keep the students coming.

There's a monthly subscription. Around R650 gets a child two dance, two piano and two acting classes a month, where separate lessons around town can run a parent R2,500.

"I could never afford any class at all growing up," he says. He wants his students acting in his own shows and earning while they learn. "Till today, I've never composed a CV, because I've never worked for anybody else."

I Love Melville

His favourite Melville memory is 27 Boxes before it was finished, when kids and teenagers met there and talked until late. "It's something we don't have anymore."

What he likes about Melville now is what the Melville Art Mile and The Happening are bringing back: "creating a space for those who've been wanting a home, but never had it." He wants a theatre culture next to the groove one, and a shop that makes it "as easy as possible for the good choice to happen".

Got a kid who wants to dance, act or play piano? Pop into 7 Main Road, under the old Stones, or DM Juicy on Instagram and ask about the subscription. You can call him on 066 009 6216

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This Week in Melville: 20 to 27 August, the once-offs worth planning around. View full calendar for the recurring events.

For more updates as the week goes on, visit our Instagram page @snapson7th or our Melville Pulse event calendar

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Sadly, the legendary Stokvel Gallery will be closing its doors at the end of November. Fear not; it isn't goodbye for the brand itself. Gordon explained that the team plans to find a new venue next year, outside Melville, moving out of Joburg Artist Market.

The Melville Art Mile has meant a lot to the gallery. “first Thursdays have been great for us, just because a lot more people came through to see the gallery space,” Gordon said. He added that most visitors ended up at Stokvel by the end of the evening, which made the event a real success for visibility. 

The decision to leave comes down to quiet days. “The main reason we’re thinking of going elsewhere is that people are just not coming to the gallery anymore,” Gordon noted. Outside of Melville Art Mile, the foot traffic has dropped. “Sometimes I spend a whole weekend there, and we have five people come in. That’s a pity, because I love the space.”

Gordon and the team work hard to promote the gallery and even send a weekly note to a mailing list of "about five hundred people". Before they close, they'll be presenting "Pause", a group exhibition that invites you to take a quiet break from everyday noise. Four artists, Bridget Shelton, Constance Smith, Jenny Marcus and Liz Warren, each offer their own kind of stillness through four separate collections. The show runs from 9 to 11 October 2026 at Stokvel Gallery, 76A 4th Avenue in 27 Boxes. Pop in, slow down and enjoy a moment of calm with some beautiful local art. The next chapter for Stokvel Gallery is still taking shape, but the spirit stays open and welcoming.

If you are already thinking about the next MAM, there's still plenty to do and see. The original 27 Boxes Market returns to 27 Boxes on Saturday, 10 October, from 10 am to 4 pm, with local art, jewellery, homeware, accessories, food and more. At the same venue, Stokvel Gallery presents the Pause exhibition. Pleasure Palace is hosting Cape Town musician Amy at a secret location on 10 October. Doors open at 3 pm; tickets are available on Quicket.

If you are planning further ahead, Karriers SA will be performing at Good Omens Melville on 28 November, supported by Shameless Band SA, Not One But Two and Schmatorkes, with tickets available on Quicket. There is also more to come at Die Pienk Kerk, with Luna Paige launching Die Reisigersan album with music, storytelling and art on 24 October, including a meal, followed by Johan Anker's Kerk Toe, a humorous cabaret with a two-course meal, on 31 October. 

So, while you wait for the next MAM, Melville is still giving you plenty of reasons to go out, wander around and see what's happening in the hood.

The higher-lying areas have had water only overnight for about three weeks. The supply comes on around 9 pm and goes off around 6 am.

Councillor candidate Jonathan Thompson is collecting residents’ supply reports through a Google Form. He sent the first batch of reports to Johannesburg Water’s management on 5 October.

Please fill in the Hursthill Reservoir 2 – Daily Water Supply Monitoring form and also log a fault. Jonathan Thompson said: “I would like to encourage all residents who are supplied by Hursthill Reservoir 2 to please record their water supply status on the form below.”

Elizabeth Lamond, a commercial beekeeper, has organic strawberries available in October and November: 250 g for R30 and 1 kg for R70, alongside Free State eucalyptus honey. She is known for her yoUBee Honey operation based in the Marquard area of the Free State, where she has built an apiculture business focused on raw honey and related products. Eucalyptus is a key forage source for her.

More than half a ton of rubbish was pulled from a 200-metre stretch of the Westdene Spruit in just two and a half hours on 3 October. It showed how much pollution still ends up in one of Melville’s natural waterways.

Around 30 volunteers, including people from Johannesburg City Parks and Zoo, joined the clean-up through Melville Koppies. They removed 612 kg of waste. The haul included discarded clothes, food packaging, polystyrene containers and even electronic waste like television screens and computers.

Tam Scheidegger, a conservation volunteer at Melville Koppies, said a lot of the litter reaches the stream through storm-water drains. It often starts as litter dropped on roads or swept into the drains by residents.

“People actually sweep them into the hole in the side of the road, because where does that go? It just goes away. And where does it go away? It goes into the river,” she said.

For Tam, the clean-up is about more than just clearing rubbish. It is about making the open space feel safe again so people can spend time outdoors and enjoy nature. A section of the stream that has already had five clean-ups this year is looking much better. School groups have also been testing the water and learning about the environment. Restoring the spruit will take time, she said. She sees the work as a five-year plan with a simple goal: children and families coming back to the waterway to explore.

“I want to be able to see moms coming down with their children, and I want to see them playing in the river and looking for insects, trying to catch tadpoles with their little net,” she said.

Her message is clear: “Use it or lose it. If you don’t use it, you will lose it, and this is a space we should never lose.”

This latest effort follows the World Cleanup Day action we covered in issue 95. Volunteers cleaned the litter-filled bend on Rustenburg Road near 9th Avenue.

These clean-ups show what happens when residents get involved. Joining community efforts that make our neighbourhoods better is one of the easiest and most rewarding things we can do. A little help goes a long way. The spruit, the koppies and the streets have all benefited. Well done, everyone. Keep an eye out for the next call to action.

Things to do on the Melville Koppies this weekend

The Melville Koppies has a full weekend of outdoor activities. Here is what is coming up and how you can support this special place.

Hike, yoga and plant-based brunch

Zimtoti Bakery is hosting a Hike and Brunch on Saturday 10 October at 8 am. The morning includes a hike, yoga with Ayanda Seoka, and a plant-based brunch. Ayanda is a Kundalini Yoga teacher who loves sharing yoga, meditation and breathwork. The full experience costs R400, and tickets are available on zimtoti.co.za. Meet at Melville Koppies, 1 Kafue Road, Emmarentia. For queries, WhatsApp 071 341 6596.

Storytime with Merle Grace

On Sunday 11 October at 9 am, Merle Grace will tell the story Kasanko’s Dream about an ironmonger, leadership, AI and making a difference. Park at Marks Park Sports Club on Judith Road and walk about 10 minutes up into the reserve. Adults pay R100, children R50 and under-5s are free. The session will last for about 30 minutes. All money goes towards protecting and looking after the Koppies. Give yourself time to park and walk up. 

For more information, call 066 571 9539 or email [email protected].

Please support the Koppies through Woollies

The Koppies still need our help. The old My School card system has ended, and monthly funding could drop by half if people do not switch to the Woollies app. It is quick to do. Open the app, tap Loyalty, go to MyDifference, scroll to Causes and hit Add another cause. Search for Friends of Melville Koppies, select it, and you are done. You can support up to three causes at once. Even if you used to help through MySchool, please check that Friends of Melville Koppies is still listed. Open the app today and add them so the support continues.

Melville is getting plenty of positive attention right now on different platforms. From local news to heritage pages and lifestyle guides, the suburb keeps popping up for all the right reasons.

The Northcliff Melville Times recently shared a story about volunteers pulling more than half a tonne of rubbish from a stretch of the Westdene Spruit in Melville Koppies. 

What’s On In Joburg painted a lively picture of a day in Melville. The guide calls the suburb a place with a bohemian feel, full of culture, art, bars, coffee shops and small businesses. It recommends antique shopping at Clyde on 4th, yoga classes, a meal at The Countess in 27 Boxes, a hike on Melville Koppies, a visit to the Melville Day Spa, Italian food at Café Picobella, and exploring the unique shops at 27 Boxes.

From clean-ups and heritage walks to food, shopping and nature, Melville is clearly being noticed and celebrated across Joburg. It’s a good time to get out and enjoy what our suburb has to offer.

Thank you for making it this far! If it was worth a cup, why not buy us a coffee?

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'til next week, Melville

Stay dancing, stay dreaming, stay down the road.

Gabotse ✌️